“It’s a nightmare”: Family of fallen Fort Campbell soldier increases reward for information to $55,000

The family of Army Private Katia Duenas-Aguilar, a soldier from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, who was found dead, has increased a $25,000 reward by $30,000 for information leading to an arrest. Local police have ruled the death a homicide. (US Army)

The mother of a slain Fort Campbell soldier is asking for anyone with information about her daughter’s death to come forward and is offering an additional $30,000 of her own money as a reward.

Private Katia Duenas-Aguilar, 23, was found dead in a Clarksville, Tennessee, residence on May 18. Clarksville police ruled her death a homicide. Police said Tuesday that the department is working with the Army Criminal Investigation Division and is “actively pursuing leads.” Police have not released any further details about the case.

“We are not feeling well. We want to believe that it was a nightmare, that we can wake up and she is still there,” Cecilia Ruiz-Aguilar, the soldier’s sister, said Saturday during a press conference in Texas, where the family lives.

She spoke alongside her mother, Carmen Aguilar, and representatives of the League of United Latin American Citizens, a Hispanic and Latino civil rights organization commonly known as LULAC.

Information technology specialist Katia Duenas-Aguilar, 23, was found dead on May 18 in a Clarksville, Tennessee, residence near her duty station with the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Her death is being investigated as homicide, and her family and the League of United Latin American Citizens are offering a $55,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. (League of United Latin American Citizens)

In addition to the reward for the family, LULAC has offered $25,000.

“We at LULAC stand with this family and we want justice,” said AnaLuisa Carrillo-Tapia, LULAC National Sergeant-at-Arms. “This is a human being. This is a Latina. This is a young woman who signed up to serve our country and that is our focus today. We want to know what happened, who did it and we want to make sure that person or persons are brought to justice.”

Speaking to news reporters in Spanish, Carmen Aguilar described how her daughter had recently considered re-committing, even asking a counselor to help her make the decision.

Duenas-Aguilar had been working as an IT specialist with the Combat Aviation Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, since 2019. This was her first duty station after enlisting in her hometown of Mesquite, east of Dallas, the previous year.

Duenas-Aguilar had a 4-year-old son. Her family said the soldier had become increasingly stressed and may have started using marijuana. They did not know if this had gotten her in trouble with her unit.

A spokeswoman for the division declined to comment on the soldier’s status with her unit, saying it was inappropriate to delve into a soldier’s medical records. The focus is on Duenas-Aguilar’s family, the division said.

This is not the first time LULAC has offered reward money to seek justice for a soldier’s family. The organization was active in raising awareness about the disappearance of Spc. Vanessa Guillen of Fort Cavazos, Texas, in April 2020. Guillen’s body was found off base approximately two months later. Investigators determined she had been killed by another soldier on base and subsequently relocated.

“LULAC will not rest until our soldiers who leave their families and homes to defend our country are safe wherever they live,” said Domingo Garcia, national president of LULAC, in a statement. “Since the killing of U.S. Army Spc. Guillen, LULAC has worked with the Army and the Pentagon to pass and enforce laws that protect Latino soldiers and others from sexual trauma in the military. While we do not yet know the circumstances of Katia’s death, we are calling for a thorough and transparent investigation so that all the facts about her killing come to light.”